Victor was surprised by Nikki's unannounced return. He anxiously awaited her answer to his marriage proposal (for the entire episode!). Nikki found herself a little overwhelmed by the moment and her thoughts. While she was away she did a lot of soul searching in regards to her life, past, present and future, as well as to the subject matter of becoming Mrs. Victor Newman. She questioned why Victor was so secretive about his trip to visit his "women of the past," pointing out the fact that many of their arguments and misunderstandings could have been avoided if Victor had just been up front with her. Victor explained his secrecy, stating that he had been uncertain about the outcome of his trip and he didn't want to raise false hopes. Nikki admitted to gaining a great deal of insight and perspective while she was away, and both parties confessed that their story has been a wonderful love affair. Nikki's current concern is whether or not their relationship can ever be more than just a fantasy.

They reminisce about their history, recalling how Nikki was an exotic dancer when they met and at the time Victor had more than a few rough edges. Nikki doesn't want to repeat their mistakes, and questions whether or not they have what it takes to be together-- forever. Nikki makes it clear that she couldn't stand another break-up. It would destroy her if things didn't work out. Victor asks how he can convince her that things will be different this time? He notes that they are no longer the same people they were the first time they were wed... they have changed-- "he's mellowed over the years, and she's a polished gem." Nikki says that as far as charm is concerned Victor hasn't changed, and he counters by acknowledging her ability to still captivate him, Victor then declares Nikki the love of his life and demands an answer to his proposal "now." Nikki clings to her fears for just a moment, but then gave in to her love for him with a resounding "Yes, I'll marry you. Yes, I'll be Mrs. Victor Newman once again." The duo professed their love, and Victor made it official by putting the ring on his bride-to-be's finger.

Ashley shows up in Jack's office to sign some papers, but finding her brother out, she takes advantage of the opportunity to record some thoughts in the audio diary that she has just started. She is hoping to keep track of the feelings and challenges she's been facing in regards to having cancer and then to be able to sort those feelings out. She starts by admitting the last few weeks have been very hard for she and Brad, they seem to be having a "communications breakdown." Before she can vent further Jack entered, interrupting her thoughts. Although happy to see that Ashley took his advice about keeping an audio diary, Jack still proffered her the chance to garner some "real person" big brother advice should she want it. Ashley thanked him, but for now would like to deal with things herself. She was surprised to learn that Nikki is back in town, and doubly surprised to discover Victor has proposed to her. Jack and Ashley talked briefly about the history between Victor and Nikki, and Jack shared his suspicion that Nikki is going to turn Victor's proposal down. After Jack has left, Ashley confided to her audio diary that she was upset to learn that Victor has proposed to Nikki, she is surprised by her own reaction.

At the coffeehouse Billy did his best to warn Raul about putting the "full court press" on Brittany, he advises his friend to slow things down. Raul is dumber than a stump, um, er... I mean, Raul believes that Billy is just jealous of what he and Brittany have going, and goes as far as to say that because Billy isn't having sex with Mac there is no way the two of them are "really" in love. Billy tried to help his friend see that Brittany may not be comfortable with so much talk about love and Raul's public displays of affection. But little Romeo assures Billy that he and Brit are on the same page and she is "into him" as much as he is into her, and that when he looks into her eyes he can see forever (yeah, it was a little creepy/sad). Billy apologized, saying he must have read things wrong. He wishes Raul and Brittany a great life together.

Meanwhile, over at Jabot, J.T. is giving Brittany the business about being in love with Raul. At first little Princess neither confirms or denies how she feels about Raul, but after a little more pressing she says she's not in love with him, she just likes the way he treats her. He is very kind and sweet, and it just so happens that she likes that. J.T. warns her about allowing someone to have that much control over her. Brit does admit that the idea of being in love does scare her a little. J.T. tells her it should scare her a lot, Raul is all over her, she's not the same person she used to be. J.T. claims that love is for losers, and tells his former-girlfriend that when she realizes that and is done with Raul, he'll still be there. Later, Raul stops in to invite Brittany out for dinner, at first she begs off, claiming to be tired. But after a little nudging from Raul, she decides she'd like to have dinner after all. She and Raul make-out while a disgusted J.T. watches.

Over at the law offices of Baldwin and Williams, Michael has a surprise for the fair Christine. He bought the red dress he saw her ogle in the window of Fenmore's Department Store. He plays coy with her at first not revealing his gift, but after an unexpected "legal advice" visit from Lauren-who offers Michael her full support in hooking up with Christine (thus keeping her away from Paul) he presents his partner with the dress and an invitation to the Collinade Room.

Paul is upset to learn that Diane Jenkins is the mysterious friend that Isabella has been running out to visit. Despite his wife's belief that she and Diane have a lot in common, Paul supplies that he has a lot of problems with Diane and he doesn't want Isabella being her friend. Paul shares the fact that he holds Diane responsible for breaking up his sister Patti's relationship with Jack (see Patti found Diane in bed with Jack on the morning of their wedding). Paul is also anti-Diane because of the way she treated Andy Richards (Paul's ex-partner, Diane's ex-husband) like garbage. Paul declares her a horrible person and incapable of change. He tells Isabella to stay away from Diane. Isabella asks, half-serious and half "what-the-?," if that's an order? Paul supplies that the subject is not up for debate and she is to stay away from Diane.

Victor called Victoria and Nicholas to his penthouse, supposedly to congratulate them on doing a good job on business matters. Nikki rings the doorbell, and they reveal the real reason he called them there-to announce their engagement. The siblings, especially Victoria, are beside themselves with excitement. After some good-natured teasing, they tell Victoria and Nicholas they plan to marry soon, and Victoria offers to make the arrangements, so nothing can go wrong.

Max Hollister shows up at Gina's restaurant looking for Nikki. Gina introduces Max to Jack Abbott, and Max begins to discuss their mutual friend Nikki. Jack is immediately suspicious of Max and gives him the cold shoulder, telling him Nikki doesn't need any "vultures" like Max hanging around her. Max ignores Jack's protectiveness and orders takeout food for Nikki, who he assumes is going to be feeling down and out after returning from her trip.

Michael takes Chris to the Colonnade Room for what he hopes will be a romantic evening. In fact, he insists that they don't talk business, that this is an evening strictly for fun. The evening does prove to be fun, until Chris starts having a flashback about a date with Paul at the same restaurant. Noticing her sudden distance, he asks her what she's thinking about. She hesitates, but he persuades her to tell him about her memory of her date with Paul. He makes a sincere effort to be understanding, but concludes that she isn't in "the same place" as he is---as far as his romantic feelings are concerned. Chris looks uncomfortable and doesn't answer right away.

Paul and Isabella fight about Isabella's friendship with Diane Jenkins. Paul is adamantly against it, but Isabella explains that Diane has been a lifeline to her and she doesn't have any intention of ending the friendship. Paul tries a different approach by encouraging her to make new friends, suggesting she join a gym or playgroup, or even do some volunteer work. Although she doesn't seem receptive to any of his suggestions, she does promise to be cautious where Diane is concerned.

Lauren drops in on the newlyweds, bringing a gift for the baby. The present is a very ornate Italian silk christening gown for Baby Ricky's upcoming baptism, and Paul and Isabella express their appreciation for her thoughtfulness. Just then, Mary rings the bell and comes in carrying a bag. She excitedly opens the bag and pulls out a very simple-looking christening gown. She announced that it was the one Paul was baptized in and that she had saved it all of these years. Sensing the change in the air, she looked over and saw Lauren's gift. Lauren graciously offered to return hers and said that of course, Ricky should wear Paul's, as it would be more meaningful.

Paul and his mother leave and Isabella thanks Lauren for understanding about the christening gown. Lauren is excited to tell Isabella about Michael's gift to Christine and that they are going to the Collonnade Room. Isabella is so thrilled at the prospect of keeping Chris away from Paul that she gives Lauren a hug and tells her the news made her day. Lauren asks Isabella if things between she and Paul are as good as they seem, and Isabella begins voicing regrets. Lauren begins to probe more deeply, and asks what secrets she's keeping.

Ashley went to Gina's alone and begins thinking of past memories of Victor. She looks over and sees Lori Brooks, a former Genoa City resident. She approaches Lori, sits down and proceeds to ask her what she's doing in town. Not interested in answering Ashley's questions, Lori acts put off and becomes offended when Ashley asks if she is there on Victor's request. Lori tells Ashley that she is in Genoa City for personal reasons, not because of Victor. Pushing further, Ashley asks if Victor asked her to come back because of the Leanna Love situation. Lori loosens up and tells Ashley that although she and Victor were once engaged, they were never lovers, and she left him high and dry at the wedding altar. Satisfied with her findings, Ashley backs off and leaves.

Lori walks up to the bar, approaches a startled Max Hollister. When he asks her what she's doing in Genoa City, she strokes his face and tells him that she is there to see him.

Jack visits Phyllis at Newman Enterprises and tells her he has a surprise for her. He suggests a vacation and tells her he has planned a trip for them to go to Cannes-leaving that evening. Phylliis is thrilled about going to the exotic French Riviera, but asks Jack if he is sure he can leave Kyle. Jack tells her he really appreciates the effort she was making with Kyle, and she tells him their lives are even better since she decided to accept the situation.

Victor and Nikki agreed to marry soon and keep both the ranch and the penthouse as residences. Miguel brought Nikki some clothes and expressed his happiness over their engagement. He then told Nikki that Max Hollister had left a message for her to call him on his cell phone. After Miguel left, Victor told her there was no reason for her to talk to Max. Nikki said she felt that she should, but it would probably be their last conversation. When Victor reacted positively, she said things had changed, as she'd just won their first argument, but she wouldn't let it go to her head. Victor laughed and said, "Don't!"

Max assured his estranged wife, Lori Brooks Hollister, that he was ready to sign their divorce papers. As she talked about how strange it was to be back in Genoa City, he discovered that she was an ex-love of Victor's. He seemed somewhat bitter about all the things he hadn't known about her. Lori emotionally said that she'd hurt a lot of people, including him, but that had never been her intention. When she figured out that he had a new romantic interest, she playfully tried to get details from him. Max refused to say anything. At that point, Nikki called his cell phone to ask him to meet her in the Jabot board room. Max agreed, then told Lori he would come by the Genoa City Hotel, where Lori was staying, at a later time to sign the papers.

Lauren assured Isabella that Christine's date with Michael at the Colonnade Room boded well for Paul and Isabella's marriage. Isabella seemed less certain. Paul returned home, after a discussion at his office with Lynn. Lynn told him that his strong reaction to a friend of Isabella's of whom he did not approve might have more to do with his residual feelings for Christine. Paul told her that was behind him. Lynn then encouraged him to go home and make peace with his wife. Paul's idea, which he shared with Isabella in front of Lauren, was for the two of them to enjoy a romantic night out at the Colonnade Room. After he left to get ready, Lauren urged Isabella to choose another place to dine. Isabella said she was interested in seeing Michael and Christine together, as well as Paul's reaction to them.

At the Colonnade Room, Michael was saddened by Christine's memories of sharing time there with Paul. He noted that he and Christine were not at the same point regarding where they wanted their relationship to go. Chris reminded him that it was amazing they could even be law partners, much less friends, considering their history. She wished that could be enough for him. When Michael asked if they could ever be more to each other, she said that anything was possible. Then he saw her react to Paul walking in with Isabella. After they talked about that, Michael finally convinced Christine to dance with him.

When Paul remarked on how well Isabella was handling the sight of Christine, she admitted that she'd known his ex-wife was going to be there. Paul said she could have forewarned him, and she said she hadn't realized it mattered, since they were bound to all run into each other from time to time. She then agreed to dance with Paul. As he danced with her, and Christine danced with Michael, Paul and Christine gazed at each other across the dance floor.

Sharon and Diego exchanged some terse words at Crimson Lights. She finally admitted that she felt like there was something wrong with her. Before she could elaborate, Nick and Victoria came in with the good news about their parents' reconciliation. Sharon put on a great act of not caring about Diego's plans to take Victoria out to a club later, while Victoria watched her skeptically. After Sharon and Nick left, Victoria asked Diego if anything was going on between him and Sharon. He assured her that he had no romantic interest in Sharon at all. Victoria said a couple of insulting things about Sharon's assessment of her motives where Diego was concerned, but Diego seemed undisturbed. Finally, Victoria admitted she was tired after such an emotional day, and she no longer really wanted to go out. Diego was fine with that. Later, when he was alone in the tack room, Victoria came to see him. She said she didn't feel like being alone, she just hadn't wanted to go to a noisy nightclub. Diego poured them some wine and listened as she talked about how happy she was for her parents. He made a toast to "new beginnings," and Victoria smiled as she sipped her wine.

At home, Nick flirtatiously talked to Sharon about what they were going to do since the kids were already in bed and the sitter was gone. When he mentioned being a little jealous about the excitement of the new romance that Diego and Victoria were experiencing, Sharon got a strange look on her face. Nick said he wished she could be happy for them. Sharon asked him to take her to bed. Later, while Nick dozed, Sharon remembered her afternoon tryst with Diego and began to cry. When Nick awoke and asked what was wrong, Sharon said she was just so happy, and he kissed her.

Max was glad to see Nikki again in the board room at Jabot. He had wonderful dinner plans in mind. He asked about her decision and was clearly disappointed when he found out that she had agreed to marry Victor again. He kept saying, "He hurt you before, he'll hurt you again!" but she didn't change her mind. She sent him packing. As he left the foyer, he vowed that he wasn't going to give up on her.

Victor allowed Lorie Brooks to visit him in the penthouse. He was skeptical about her motives given the fact that she left him at the altar and had supposedly set him up to help her future husband land a business deal. She tried to apologize, but knew that she really wasn't getting anywhere, so she left. Nikki came off the elevator shortly before Lorie boarded it. She hid in the shadows, listening to their final words. After Lorie descended, Nikki knocked at Victor's door. She immediately asked him what Lorie was doing there and pretended to accept his explanation. They hugged as she looked concerned. . .

Sharon left her bed with Nicholas and went downstairs to agonize about her memories of Diego. She looked at her family picture and couldn't understand how she could be compromising that. Cassie awoke and told her mother about a bad dream that scared her -- she was trying to talk to her Daddy, but couldn't. Sharon assured her and Nick came down to help calm his girls.

Victoria and Diego shared some wonderful wine and talked about some of Victoria's secrets. He asked about her love life and she mentioned Cole, but didn't mention Ryan until she realized that the wine they were drinking was a bottle that she had purchased for her special times with him in the tack house. She started crying and Diego comforted her. It built into a kiss and true passion, but Diego stopped them short before too long. He didn't give her much of an explanation either, leaving her feeling dejected and wanting to run away. He thought about stopping her, but wasn't really very effective with that attempt. The date ended with anger and sadness.

Paul and Isabella jumped up onto the dance floor for a salsa dance. Michael could tell that Chris was affected by seeing them together and suggested that they leave. She received a phone call on her cell phone and he high-tailed it to the lobby to go after Isabella for ending up at the Colonnade Room at the same time as he was there with Christine. She didn't admit it, but it was some type of a test for Paul to see if he reacted to seeing them together. Paul passed the test, but Christine did not. She looked over at Paul alone at his table and imagined him asking her to dance. He held her tight on the dance floor and they were a loving couple once again. . .

Reality returned and both couples returned home. Paul was thinking about some intimate time with his new wife, but then her defenses went up when he asked about her family and whether or not she was ready to share her new life with them.

Chris all but kicked Michael out of her apartment after returning from their date. She told him that things were different now because he wanted something more. She insisted that there wasn't anything to talk about and cut him off short. He left as she looked on wondering what in the world she was doing.

Katherine was amused that Billy was up and about so early in the morning and already visiting Mac. She told Mac that while she was in the shower, Brock had called. He was still helping build houses in Louisiana for the underprivileged. After Katherine left them alone, Billy told Mac he had a great idea. He was so impressed with what Brock was doing for others, that he suggested they postpone college for a while to go help Brock with his work. Mac reminded him that Jill would go ballistic over such an idea, and their fathers might not approve, either. Billy told her that they were both eighteen and free to do as they pleased. He told her that he'd leave her alone for a while to think it over.

At Crimson Lights, Colleen asked Caitlin to leave so she could be alone with J.T. She saw him brooding over a paper he held, and he admitted it was a reading list of books he'd had since May and was supposed to have been reading all summer in preparation for his college classes. Colleen realized that she'd already read most of the books on the list, and she proposed tutoring him, breaking down the stories, characters, and what she thought his professors would want him to know. J.T. thought it was really cool that she was going to help him like that. Colleen said it was her way of paying him back for coming to her recital and taping it so her family could see it. J.T. denied that he'd done anything special, and said she would help him pass the dull hours at the boutique with her lessons. After he left, as Colleen sat smiling to herself, Billy joined her and asked why J.T. had been talking to her.

Sharon made breakfast for Nick, who said he needed to get a file from the main house to read over his meal. After he left, Sharon called Diego, who refused to discuss his evening with Victoria and even hung up on her. Sharon was furious about the way he was treating her.

Nick was surprised to find Victoria in a foul mood. He correctly surmised that her date with Diego hadn't gone well. She said that she should have trusted her instincts. Not only did she not intend to see him again, but she was going to ask her mother to hire a new groom and Nick was no longer to force her and Diego together. A dejected Nick returned to his house and told Sharon things had not gone well with Victoria and Diego. He said he should have never gotten involved, since Diego had now upset his sister. Sharon asked if he might have that wrong, and Victoria was the one who hurt Diego. In any case, Nick said his matchmaking days were over. After Nick left for work, Sharon mused how glad she was that it was finally all over with Victoria and Diego.

Diego was surprised to see Victoria at his door. When she told him how much he'd humiliated her the night before, by sending her away after she kissed him, Diego told her she had misunderstood. He said he hadn't wanted to take advantage of her when she was feeling vulnerable about Ryan's death. He wanted the two of them to get off on the right foot for the right reasons. He then kissed her again, then decided maybe it was a bad idea and tried to leave. Victoria stopped him. She admitted that her initial interest in him had been because she thought something was going on between him and Sharon. But she said things had changed somewhere along the way. Diego admitted they'd changed for him, too. This time, they both kissed each other and neither of them broke away.

After a romantic night, Nikki and Victor talked about her meeting with Max and his visit from Lori. Nikki admitted that Max hadn't been happy to hear about their engagement, and Victor huffed that it was none of his business. When Nikki asked, again, what Lori was doing there, Victor insisted that Lori had said she was in town on some personal business and not just to see him. He teased her about being jealous, and she told him to behave himself. He then left for work while Nikki smiled to herself.

In her hotel room, Lori reminisced about the day more than twenty years before when Victor had proposed to her, giving her a twelve carat diamond that she left behind when she stood him up at the altar. Her reverie was interrupted by a visit from Max, looking disheveled, who was there to sign their divorce papers. When Lori gave him some coffee and asked what had happened to change his mood about his new lady since the night before, Max admitted that it was Nikki. He told her that Nikki had accepted Victor's proposal. Lori was shocked, admitting that she'd seen Victor, who had not even mentioned Nikki to her. Max said he was sure that Victor would be unfaithful to Nikki again if the right opportunity came along. He then speculated that Lori might be able to help with that. Lori was offended at the idea and demanded that he leave her hotel room. Before he could, they heard a knock on the door. When Lori asked who it was, they stared at each other as her visitor said, "It's Nikki Newman."